tion of my life, when I was ill and not able to help myself; in which time he also took care of and supported my mare.

There was at this time a pretty young fellow in garrison with us, a volunteer, but in whose regiment I cannot readily call to mind; he was the younger son of a gentleman of good fortune, who gave him so handsome an allowance, that he maintained a servant and two horses; dressed as well as any officer, and kept the best company; he was very forward in every action; never shunned, but rather courted danger; and, in the midst of the greatest, always showed a great composure of mind in his countenance: he was not above eighteen, but very reserved, and somewhat haughty. This gentleman resented the freedom I took with some officers where he was in company, and told me I was very impertinent. The affront nettled me so much, that I called him a petit maitre, and said, if it would not be a disgrace to me to set my wit to boys, I would teach him better manners, by giving him the correction his ill breeding called for. He answered with a pish only, and turning his back on me, said to a captain, You see the fruits of making mean people familiar: you ought indeed to bear with it, because you have encouraged her taking such liberties, and those brought her impertinence upon you; but 'tis hard upon me, who always have avoided her. You will do well, replied I, to be careful in avoiding me for the future; and went home in a passion, dressed myself in one of my husband's suits, (for he had two very handsome ones I had bought him out of my capital, which was not yet quite exhausted,) put on my silverhilted sword, and went to a young woman's house whom the cadet visited. I asked for her, and being introduced, desired to speak with her in private. As soon as she had carried me into a room, and seated herself, desiring me to sit, she asked my business. Madam, said I, to be short with you, I have often

seen, and as often admired you; I am now come to tell you the passion you have inspired, which I can no longer conceal; it gives me too great torture. I know you have some engagements with a young English cadet, which have hurt your reputation: but to give you the most convincing proof of my fondness, if you will promise to cast him off, and never see him more, I will not only marry you, but maintain you as the wife of an English gentleman of fortune, as I pretend, and you will find me to be, and promise on my honour, never to reproach you with your former life. Sir, said she, you are very free with my character. Madam, replied I, not more so than the world; for I learned it from common fame. Which, answered my damsel, you will allow a common liar: however, sir, you talk so much like a man of honour, that I can forgive the liberty you have taken, and desire a little time to consider on what you have proposed. I told her, what she might term but a small space, a man as passionately in love as I was, would count an age: I will give you to consider, continued I, till to-morrow ten o'clock, which is not less, by my computation, than a month's delay; and rising up, saluted her, and took my leave. I was punctual to my hour the next morning, and she told me, she accepted my conditions, and as a proof that she would be just to them, said, I last night refused to see the cadet, notwithstanding he was very urgent. I stayed with her three hours, in which time I had promised her mountains; a life which should be but one continued round of pleasure, and an affection which no time should have force to alter. During my visit, I had the satisfaction to hear her servant tell the cadet, who came to see his mistress, that she was not at home, and that she had left word, in case he came to the house, in her absence, that she should take it as a favour, his giving over visiting her, which would beside save him a fruitless trouble. He said, I suppose she has some new fa

vourite, I shall find him out; and flung away in a rage, which gave me the most sensible pleasure. I took my leave soon after, and was going home to shift my dress, when I spied my cadet at a little distance, who watched his mistress's door. He hastened after me, and asked what business I had in that house which he saw me come out of. Sir, said I, By what authority do you ask me? Here, said he, is my commission to examine you, laying his hand on his sword; and I, doing the like, replied, Here is my reason for not answering you. We both drew, the moment my husband passed by, who, knowing me, also drew, and got between us, saying, My dear Kitty, what's the meaning of this? At these words, the cadet, looking earnestly in my face, knew me, put up his sword, laughed heartily, and taking me by the hand, said, Let us be friends for the future; I am glad I have not a more dangerous rival; come Kit, I'll give you and your husband a bottle and bird for dinner.

You see,

my

said I, what it is to affront me; for I have made but two visits to your mistress, and in them have made such a progress, that you have been twice refused entrance. An officer of our acquaintance coming by, he prevailed on him to keep us company. The cadet carried us to the Couronne Imperiale, where he ordered a handsome dinner; after which we drank a hearty bottle, were very merry with the manner of revenge; he begged pardon for having affronted me, promised he would be no more guilty, and entreated me to undeceive his mistress, whom he could easily forgive agreeing to honourable and such alluring conditions as I had offered. I reconciled them, and we were all good friends the little time he stayed in the Low Countries, which was but ten days after; for his elder brother dying by a hurt he received by a fall in hunting, his father sent for him over, and he carried his lady with him to England.

I have already said that a very great frost immedi

ately followed the taking of Ghent, and that two of our sentinels were found frozen to death. This frost continued, and was so terribly severe, that a number of people, fruit trees, and sown seed, perished by the cold. This hard winter occasioned a very great scarcity, and excessively raised the price of all manner of provisions, especially in France, where almost all the vines were frost-nipped to the very roots: so that of many years before, that kingdom had not been in so deplorable a situation. The treasury was exhausted by the expense of the war; trade was interrupted by the number of ships the two maritime powers kept constantly cruising in all parts of the seas to prevent the importation of goods; the farmer was not only incapable of paying his rent, but even of supplying the towns with necessary provisions; in a word, they were in the utmost desolation. To the cries of the miserable harassed people were joined public acts of devotion to appease the anger of heaven, to deprecate their then present miseries, and to obtain a speedy peace, which they looked upon as the only remedy to these oppressive evils. The king gave his people to understand that he was sensibly touched with their sufferings, and declared that he was inclined to give them peace, whatever it cost him. In effect, he sent messieurs Voisin and Rouille, to Holland, in appearance upon the affair of the fishery; but in earnest, to set on foot a negotiation with the allies. The secret was so closely kept all the time the conferences were held at the Hague, that no one had any certain knowledge of what was upon the carpet; but the number of extraordinary couriers, which were observed to pass and repass, gave some inkling of a treaty of peace, and hopes of a happy issue; more especially when they saw the duke of Marlborough, who had been at all the conferences, go for England on the 2nd of May, and return again on the 15th, N.S., accompanied by lord Townshend, whom the queen had honoured with the character of envoy

extraordinary, to treat on a peace. The French king sent messieurs Torcy and Pajot, to hasten its conclusion. Notwithstanding the protest made by king Philip, that he would never renounce the crown of Spain, but was resolved, on the contrary, to maintain his right to it by the sword to the last drop of his blood, the conferences were carried on more briskly than ever, and sometimes protracted to midnight. On the 28th of May, N. S., articles were prepared and signed by the plenipotentiaries of the allies. Beside a great number of towns in the Low Countries, on the Rhine and elsewhere, which France gave up by these articles, Charles was declared in them lawful king of all the Spanish monarchy; and it was agreed that Philip and his family should quit that kingdom by the 1st of September, and in case of his refusal, that the king of France should join his arms to those of the allies, to compel him by force.

Messieurs Torcy and Pajot set out for the court of France with the preliminaries agreed upon; but at the time that every one thought the peace in a manner concluded, advice came that Lewis XIV. could never consent to assist in dethroning his grandson, and for that reason had rejected the articles: thus vanished all the hopes conceived of the pacification of Europe.

The negotiations of peace had not suspended the necessary preparations for continuing the war; upon their being broken off, Mr. Rouille set out on his return to France on the 9th of June, N. S., and the duke of Marlborough on the same day for the army.

The French being intrenched near Arras, in a camp covered with woods and marshes, which rendered it impracticable to approach them, the duke turned back upon Tournay, a very strong town, where monsieur de Surville commanded a garrison of four thousand men. We invested the place on the 27th of June, N. S., and while preparations were making to open the trenches, the prince of Orange, stadtholder of Frise, at the head